


Mute Magic

by ChaseValentine



Category: Original Work
Genre: Alcohol, Blood, Coding, Deaf Character, Dubious Consent, F/M, Faeries - Freeform, Games, LGBTQ Character, Love, M/M, Magic, Mahou Shoujo, Sexual Content, Sexual Themes, Underage Drinking, Violence, mute character
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-02-02
Updated: 2020-02-02
Packaged: 2021-02-27 19:21:00
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, Underage
Chapters: 3
Words: 8,640
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22530871
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ChaseValentine/pseuds/ChaseValentine
Summary: Chase Valentine is a gifted young programmer with the same problems most other high-schoolers have. She deals with her bullies, navigates school work, and copes with the unending boredom of it all. She works on her game with a religious reverence. One day after she is beaten by her bully, she makes a wish and it comes true. Stuck in her game, she sees that things have taken on a sinister life of their own. It's not as she made it be at all. THIS IS AN ORIGINAL WORK.





	1. Chapter 1

Prologue

  
Chase woke with her usual sense of dread that it was time for school once again. She cast one last glance at the anime on her bedside table and pulled herself out of bed. She'd already missed as many days as she dared to that semester. It wasn't that she didn't enjoy school, but more so that she didn't enjoy the people. There was the usual teasing about her male gendered name, which she had grown used to, but recently it had become something worse than that. She didn't have a crush on anyone, male or female, who went to her school and that set her apart even further than her unique name. This made her an oddity like no other; a freakish girl without "priorities", and that wasn't all that was wrong with her, either.  
The bus ride was uneventful, quiet. Chase kept the world at bay with the Japanese pop music blasting cheerfully against her eardrums. No one sat with her, but that was fine. That was all normal. In class, she kept to herself, opting not to do her projects in a group. It was another day of rinsing and repeating. High school was monotonous, gray, and unending it seemed, but it was bearable; she supposed. "Earth to Chase! You in there?" A moving hand snapped Chase from her inner reveries. Slipping onto a seat in front of her was Eveline Flynch, one of her only two friends. Eveline was a red-headed, freckle-faced gray-eyed beauty. Setting her lunch box on the table she opened it to reveal the same thing she ate every day; a turkey sub with olive oil, vinegar, tomatoes, and spinach leaves with a cupcake added on the side for sweetness. Chase had long since memorized the contents after three years of watching Eveline eat it.   
"Leave her alone, Line. She's playing Space Cadet again." Morgan Hunt waved his hand dismissively as he tore into his pizza, referring to their nickname for Chase. It was affectionately calling on the way Chase spaced out a lot.   
Ignoring them both, she opened her own lunch box and pulled out a plastic container holding her favorite German dish. Chase enjoyed several cultural dishes and this one of them. Chicken schnitzel was her favorite, but today she picked at it, feeling lethargic. Morgan looked at her with his slitted green gaze from under his hood of gold-blonde hair, observant as ever. He was opening his mouth to speak when another routine part of Chase's school days initiated. "Hey freak. I see you're chilling with your coven of bizarro friends." Chase put down her fork, halfway to her mouth and swiveled on the stool at the lunch table to face none other than Heather Locke. Before she could react in any other way, Eveline was up out of her seat, leaning so far across the table that Morgan prepared himself to grab and restrain her; another thing that happened all the time.   
"Back off Feather head! Leave Chase alone." Chase smiled at the insult; implying Heather was an airhead. "We've talked about this. I'll come over there and ruin your preppy, plastic face you washed out, bleach-blonde tramp."  
Heather opened her mouth to shoot something back, but was quickly interrupted by one of her friends; the two of which usually only ever stood behind her and did nothing. "Let's go Heather. They're not worth your time."  
"Totally." Chimed the second, Jennifer, Chase thought her name was. Jennifer never had an original thought, much like the other crony.   
Flipping her hair back over her shoulder, Heather pinned Chase with a glare that could kill young dogs and spat. "I know where you live. Just remember that." And she was gone, her presence looming over the lunch table no longer. Chase put the lid back on her lunch, no longer in the mood to eat, even if it was one of her favorites. Morgan noted this with an air of disapproval.   
"Come on Chase, you can't let her bother you. She'll just keep coming back." Chase said nothing. Morgan put a hand on her shoulder. "I'll get the nurse and tell her you aren't feeling well. I can walk you home-" Chase shrugged his hand off. "Ok. I get it." He wasn't hurt. Chase was a bit of a loner after all, and he respected that; him and Eveline both. He turned to Eveline and began to talk about his day so far, in an effort to turn the spotlight from Chase; something she appreciated greatly.   
The rest of the day passed in a bit of blur, especially coding class in which Chase worked on the game she had been making for her final project due at the end of the year. The teacher was as always impressed with her; especially because everyone else was in groups of three or four. It was almost therapeutic, working through the bugs and perfecting the graphics. It was going to be beautiful when she was done. She had already had a company from Japan asking about it because her teacher had enough faith in her talent to put her out there. It was really the best spot in her life at the moment. Because Chase had chosen to stay after school and get in some more quality time working on the artificial intelligence controlling the enemies, she had missed the bus; a consequence she was fully aware of.   
Packing up her laptop and chargers into her messenger bag, she hung it back over one shoulder and started out the doors, listening to the solid, metallic click of the mechanized locks. Chase took a deep breath and plugged her earbuds in, starting home. It would take about ten minutes if she took her time, but it was no big deal, so long as she wasn't running the distance. Chase hated running. This time classic American metal filled her ears, a soothing start to her journey home. She settled into a rhythm, watching her own feet rise and fall. Left step, right step, left step, right step again. This is why it was such a huge shock when a hard shove to her core sent her sprawling backward into a rough, brick wall. Her earbuds were ripped from her ears the next instant and her chin was knocked up, sending the back of her head into the wall. Her teeth clacked harshly on her tongue, filling her skull with a sudden starburst of pain. Looming over her, Heather glared down in all her sadistic might.   
"Hello, freak." She cocked her head. "What's the matter? Cat got your tongue?" Chase's anger boiled and she opened her mouth, but just as with every other day of her life, only a wheeze came out. She was just as incapable of making a noise as she had been on the first day in her living memory. Heather laughed and shoved her again, causing Chase to actually fall this time and slide down the brick wall, scraping her back as she went. The bag with her laptop in it made a heavy thud. Chase went to grab it, to hold it close and safe to her chest. Heather got to it first; kicking it away and stepping on her hand in the process. Breathing heavily, Chase glared back up in defiant silence; virtually daring Heather to touch the bag again. "Ooo...is the freaky little freak going to kill me? I'm so frightened." Heather rolled her eyes and over emphasized the word "so". "Listen here, stop standing up to me. It's pathetic, seeing you trying to defend yourself. Don't you realize you're just a burden to those people you call friends? They constantly stick their necks out for you because you can't. It's sad that Morgan has to deal with you like that."  
Chase's mouth opened in silent laughter that shook her whole body. Suddenly, she understood Heather's anger a lot better. She shivered so hard that all the breath remaining in her body left it. Making sure there was eye contact, she stilled herself to the best of her abilities and mouthed a single word, hoping it wouldn't be lost in translation. "Gay." Heather's eyes narrowed into furious slits.   
"Don't you say that about Morgan! He's just so busy taking care of you, he doesn't even have time to find love for himself." Chase shook her head, not knowing what she would say even if she had the ability to speak. This time, Heather punched her. "Not a word of this to anyone." She smirked. "Oh wait...That's not going to be an issue." Another punch. This one snapped Chase's head to the side and made stars spin across her eyes. Her entire head throbbed with each beat of her heart now. Chase privately wished it was over already, unable to even make a cry of pain. No one would ever find her; ever hear what was happening. She turned her head, eyes gazing out to the opening of the alleyway. It would all be over soon enough if she just played dead. Eventually, Heather did grow tired on beating on a mute, stationary target and spit on Chase once before leaving. Rising on stiff legs, Chase checked on her laptop, relieved that there were only a few minor scratches to the lid and bottom. The screen itself remained intact, something she had feared was impossible after the savage treatment it received at the hands of Heather.   
Her legs felt fine, which was lucky because the rest of her journey home, a total of three minutes, Chase's head beat with pain like a drum at a marching band exhibition. Luckily, it seemed her mother had just left for her graveyard work-shift at the morgue, leaving Chase in relative privacy to get a bag of ice from the freezer and some heavy painkillers from the medicine cabinet. Hungrily gulping it down with an arctic glass of water, Chase got comfortable on her bed, willing the throbbing to cease soon. Chase hated being questioned, or talked to in a way that she would have to answer. It was always a lengthy process that involved her writing things down on a notepad as quickly as she could. She hated that most of all. She was perfectly content not to communicate at all. Using a pen and paper just felt...worse somehow. Especially because for the first seventeen years of her life, facial expressions and body language had always been enough to get her point across when she wanted to. She knew the basics of sign language, like how to ask for help or make other small talk, but that was the extent of it. Relief finally reached her a couple moments later and she was drifting off into the hazy nothingness of drug-aided sleep. Chase experienced a burst of emotion like no other, almost jarring her out of her state of lethargy. She wanted to get out of this town. Away from all the people like Heather. Sure her mother would miss her, but she would also want Chase to pursue her desires wherever they may take her. I'm going to do it. I'm going to leave.I'll move to Japan, present my game and live off it.  
Letting her eyes slip closed, Chase could've sworn she had the barest of whispers like a man in her ear. Wish granted, Child. Wish, granted.There was time for a laugh that sent chills down Chase's otherwise numb body and then the black of early stage sleep.


	2. Chapter 1

Morgan paused in his morning routine; shirt midway over his face and egg dangling from his mouth. Someone had knocked on his front door, he was sure of it. A smile graced his features and he gulped down the bite of food in his mouth, practically springing to open the door. "Chase, after yesterday I was getting worrie-" He stopped. "Oh. Hi, Mrs. Chase's Mom."  
Mrs. Valentine look worried, if the motion of wringing her hands vigourously was any sort of indicator. "Morgan...I'm really sorry to just barge over to your house like this but...Please tell me Chase and Eveline spent the night here for one of your hang-outs."  
Alarm prickled along Morgan's spine. "No m'am. I'm afraid that's not the case at all. Is...is Chase ok?" He knew the answer of course; Mrs. Valentine wasn't one to jump at shadows.   
She shook her head. "She wasn't there when I got home from work this morning. You know that I have to wake her up. She can't get up on her own, usually." The gears in Morgan's mind began to turn. She would've called the school first. This meant that Chase was missing.  
"Do you have any idea whether or not she made it home from school last night? I know it was Tuesday yesterday. That's one of the days she stays late to work on her game." Mrs. Valentine blinked, as if she hadn't considered the idea. "Or maybe she's at Eveline's. Sometimes they like to have girl nights watching movies and eating all sorts of odd food."  
Again, Mrs. Valentine was shaking her head. "I checked Eveline's place first. Then the school. This was my last...hope that everything was ok, really." Morgan hated to be the bearer of bad news, but it wasn't as if he had any sort of control over it.  
"The library." He suddenly had an epiphany. "They like her there. She's allowed to stay after hours and use the facilities for her project if she needs to." Mrs. Valentine's eyes lit up.   
"Of course! Thank you. Now get to school yourself, Morgan. I'll call and let you and Eveline know so you don't have to worry, but I do think I'll keep her home today. She'll be in no state for school if she really stayed out all night again." Mrs. Valentine took her leave, and Morgan finished getting dressed, his mind still in a daze. This wasn't like Chase. She would've left a note if she had planned to go to the library. He just...couldn't stand to see someone so kind and awesome as her mother in such pain. Worry settled back over his own mind. Something wasn't quite right here and he doubted anyone else other than himself, the Mrs, and Eveline would ever even notice. After all, who really paid any attention to those who never spoke?  
x  
Chase Valentine was dreaming. She knew this because when she opened her eyes, there was the smallest of charms floating before her in the air. It was an art style she knew well, considering it was how she had set the graphics to appear on her game. She sat up, getting a closer look at the object. It was purple, a color she hadn't yet included in any of the characters and was reluctant to do so, seeing as it was such a dark shade. The gem was set in a golden gauntlet, made up not of a solid plate but mostly of swirling, fragile lines of metal that somewhat resembled vines on a plant. Planted directly in the middle on the side that would show on the top of the hand of the wielder was a large, heart-shaped amethyst. It was a deep purple and seemed to glow; almost beating with the light, as if alive in a sense. This was certainly an amazing dream, Chase reflected as she looked at the gauntlet a little more. She'd have to add this one to the game, whenever she woke. Looking around, as if worried someone would see what she was about to do, she reached for the gauntlet, pulling it from the air and slipping it over her left hand; not surprised to see that it fit like a glove. Dream logic sure was nice.   
Closing her eyes, she laughed a little to herself at the childishness of what she was doing. I wish....Startled from her inner monologue by a horrible jarring noise, she looked up, hearing voices close by. "Of course this is the place. You don't think Valkaerys would lead us wrong, do you?" This was female and full of love and trust. Chase's wheels began to turn as dots connected themselves. The way the voice pronounced the other name, Val-cur-us was oddly charming and...intimately familiar.  
"I don't trust any man with that sort of name, Nix." The answering male was cynical sounding; a stark contrast to the sunburst voice who had spoken first. "It's far too...elf like." There was another sound like metal jarring on metal and Chase's hands reflexively covered her ears, causing her to miss a bit of dialogue.  
"-to speak, Mercer. What sort of name is that? It's nothing like any of ours. Besides, you're completely lying to me. He's your only friend." Light filtered into the space with one last metallic screech, allowing Chase to finally see that she had been sealed off in some sort of metal...bunker for one. Stranger and stranger this dream got. Two figures stood over her, features obscurred by shadow but shapes outlined perfectly by the sun.   
"Come with us." The male, Mercer, extended a hand. Chase hesitated, taking in his features. They were sharp. He had a chiseled, pale face, ink black hair and two charcoal dots in the middle of his face that glittered like water. His body was well defined, but not overly muscular; still lean. Her fingers brushed Mercer's. She felt herself falling into those eyes before the girl elbowed him out of the way, clearing away Chase's confusion. She hadn't created or textured Mercer. At least...not yet. Another brilliant idea to revisit once she rejoined the waking world.   
"Cut it out Mercer; before you wither another one. We need all the fighters we've got." Wither?  
The girl turned her friendly features on Chase; a stark contrast to her companion. "Don't mind him!" She laughed, her face sparkling. Chase realized who she was and smiled. She had particularly enjoyed creating Nix, down to the freckles on her cheeks that were actually sparkles, a product of her transformation whenever she used her own jewled gauntlet. Her red hair was streaked through with vanilla blonde highlights, giving her hair the apperance of unfinished copper. Her face was round; round and small like her frame. "You see that gauntlet on your wrist there? That means you're one of us! You fight for peace and justice and all things that are right. Or, at the very least...you want to." She gestured at Chase's new adornment. Chase blinked, wishing that she could speak even more when Nix looped an arm around her waist and pulled her out of the strange metal bunker like she weighed nothing. "You can use it to transform, like me."  
Chase took this oppurtunity to look at the magical armor she had designed for Nix, trying not to lose her shit over the seriously detailed dream she was having. It wasn't armor in the traditional sense, but more in the fact that it was a magical outfit that granted Nix abilities the player would not have in her regular form. Nix resembled a ninja, in a short, white, chinese styled kimono that had pink around the edges and one large, pink lotus in the bottom right corner. She wore tights under the knee length dress, white with orange and pink vines blossoming up the length of her legs. On her feet were ankle hugging boots of a coral pink color. They were thick and gave Chase the clear picture that a kick would seriously hurt. It was again, a stark contrast to Mercer who wore a straight black trench coat and matching, sophisticated clothing underneath. Now that she was looking at him once more, Chase suddenly failed to hear anything Nix was saying. "Mercer!" She whined. "Cut it out!"  
Mercer put a hand on his forehead. "I can't turn it off. It's genetic, Nix. You shouldn't have brought me if you were concerned about another one of the Seraphim succumbing to it." Seraphim was the term Chase had chosen to describe her brand of magical girl. Turning so that he wasn't facing Chase, he spoke again. "Enough with the orientation. Explain her new life later. She clearly can't stand the pressure." He seemed...almost disappointed at whatever it was Chase couldn't handle.   
Nix was watching her closely now. "I think she's mute. She hasn't made a single noise." Mercer shrugged.  
"If she can't fight, she can't fight. She'll just have to become a healer." Chase shook her head at this. No way in her own dreams was she going to pushed around like this.   
"I know!" Nix smacked one of her fists onto the other palm. "We'll just teach her sign language and room her with Diametris!"   
"I don't care what you do. I'm going home." Mercer whipped around and started in the opposite direction. Chase stared after him until Nix laid a hand on her shoulder, distracting her from that strange pull again. For once, Chase wished she could speak, could ask what all that was about. This would make a great addition to the coding. It was perfect for the love interest she'd felt was missing; to make it more appealing to the rest of the audiences who likely remained wavering.  
"I know this a lot to take in, but you've been chosen to make the world a better place. And it's not like you didn't know. You would've been told when you made your wish what you must do in return." That's right...that's how I wrote this. So....where's my wish?  
For the moment, Chase just nodded. It wasn't as if there was any way at all she could get her questions across. Until she was taught proper sign language, at least.   
x  
Morgan was sad. Chase had been missing for almost fifteen hours now and the local police wouldn't consider it a legitmate case until it had hit the forty-eight hour mark on the grounds that Chase was a legal adult. Eveline was a mess. She had cornered Heather at school and would've beat her to within an inch of her life if Morgan had not been there as he always had to temper the more fiery of the two. She was convinced that Heather had done something and as it turned out, she had been right. Cowering in the corner, begging Eveline not to hit her pretty face, Heather had shrieked that all she had done was "hit the freak a little, that's all". She was currently being questioned by the police but kept to her story that she had walked away, left Chase perfectly fine, that she had been breathing when they last parted.  
His dating app pinged, alerting him that there was another match, but Morgan didn't have the heart to check it out, even though the guy on the other end seemed like he might be the perfect little nerd for him. Setting his phone down, he called to his mother, passed out on the couch. "Yo ma, you want any dinner?" There was no answer, which fit with what he expected, but he knew better than to take that as a no and made a double portion of rice pilaf anyway. Brushing a blonde curl from his face, he pulled the pan off the burner and let the stovetop cool before wiping it down and serving the food, leaving a plate on a covered dish on the table next to the couch. She'd eat it when she came out of whatever bender she was on this time. Settling into his room with his plate, he switched on the tv, watching the latest episode of the anime he was into this week. He'd have to show it to Chase at school tomorrow. She loved this kind of thing. Then the realization hit him and put the fork down. It wasn't that he loved Chase, like a lot of people at the school whispered. She physically wasn't his type, and anyway, he looked at her in a different light entirely. She was like this pure source of...this pure source that he had to keep other people from hurting. She didn't deserve any of the foul treatment she got and it made his blood boil. He was just better at controlling it than Eveline; whom didn't really seem to care who knew that she was "pissed the fuck off".  
Putting his dinner to the side, he focused on the colorful characters on screen, fighting and laughing in friendship. He would make sure that Chase was ok in the end of all this and if that failed, he would see that Mrs. Valentine and Eveline got their closure. And then, just maybe he'd feel better about all of this happening.   
x  
The Settlement was just as pretty as Chase had wanted it to be and more, even more in person. Her eyes drank it all in, a complete feast for the senses. The air was heavy with summer breeze that was somehow just the perfect temperature for everyone to be happy about it and lush, green vegetation dominated the landscape. It was the perfect rural scene, dotted with charming cottages, complete with modern touches as needed. "Tomorrow once you've rested up, I'll journey with you back to the Academy where you'll learn your duties and how to make the most of your wish." Nix pouted. "If Mercer had just stuck around it would be a lot less dangerous but now I have to protect you all on my own. It's a shame too. They're sure to come for you. You seem like you've got quite the potential as a Seraphim."   
Chase had noticed that certain things had developed without her getting to that area of coding yet. The world around her had finished itself. This was the perfect, ultimate vision of what she had in mind then. She'd have to write like mad when she woke up to remember all of this. That being said, she had no clue what Nix meant by "them". She tapped her on the shoulder and gave her best worried expression. Nix just smiled. "Don't worry about it. I think I'm strong enough to handle an onslaught, even without Mercer's skills as a Slayer." But Chase wasn't convinced. She had brought life to this girl, even if that was something she'd never tell her. She could see the worry alive and well behind her reassuring grin. Nix was no more secure in this than Chase.  
Chase took this chance to give Nix a reassuring squeeze. The ninja girl was one of her favorites, even if the story remained unfinished on her end. She had powered down to enter town, not wanting to attract attention from the local elves. They were weary of the Seraphim; unsure of their usefulness. In her regular get up, she resembled a teenager, out on the town in simple, but pretty clothes. Her color scheme of orange, pink, and predominantly white persisted because Chase had felt they were beautiful colors on her. Nix gave her a more genuine smile this time and returned the embrace. "We'll be fine. If needed, I can always attempt to awaken you, after all." On a more serious tone, when they had settled, Nix sat with her on the edge of her bed. "Listen...About Mercer..." Chase edged closer, using her body language to indicate she was hanging on Nix's every word.   
"Stay away from him. Don't touch him or make eye contact with him...In fact, try not to listen to his voice too long if it's just the two of you in a room." She sighed, seeing the hundreds of questions in Chase's eyes. "It's best not to talk about him anymore. I rather like you." She smiled fondly at her before sliding her a pen and paper. "If you remember your name, write it down for me so I can talk more personally with you." Nix quietly stood from Chase's bed and wandered over to the other side of the room where her own bed was similarly positioned against the opposite wall. "Try to get some sleep, hm?"  
Chase really didn't want to close her eyes to this wonderland, afraid she'd actually wake up, but she did as the other girl asked her. For some reason...she felt as if she'd have no trouble coming back to this dream whenever she wanted. Indeed not, child. There was that voice again, but Chase paid it no mind. She was far too excited with all the happenings to care about something that was only slightly creepy. Eyes closed, she let herself drift. There would be time for this train of thought later...if she even still cared to pursue it.

  



	3. Chapter 2

Chase woke to the sound of something sizzling and sighed. Of course the dream was over. Rolling onto her feet, she was shocked almost to the point of breathlessness to see Nix across the room, cooking eggs in a pan over her gauntlet, which appeared to be producing a steady, red flame. The ruby on the other side glittered with just as much life as the amethyst on Chase's gauntlet. "Morning...." Nix looked at the notepad she had left Chase. "Chase. That's a strange name. I don't think I've ever heard that one before. I've made some breakfast." Taking the pan off her hand, she removed her gauntlet, transforming back into her regular clothes. "I've found magic cooks the eggs faster." She shook the fluffy, yellow and white food onto a plate and gave it to her companion. "Don't worry about me. I don't get hungry when I've used the gauntlet." She watched Chase eat in silence for a moment and then stood, clearing away the plates and leaving it on a rack next to the door.  
"Because you have yet to awaken the gauntlet and transform, you most certainly would not make it through a portal. We'll have to walk the distance to the Academy." She looked rueful. "This is where Mercer's company would be useful, should the Mournful or, god forbid, the Shade attack us."  
"Shade?" Chase wrote, tapping her on the shoulder so she'd see what Chase had asked.  
"The Mournful are what we exist to fight." Chase hadn't asked specifically for that reason. She knew of course. She had already written that part of the story into the game. Screwing up her face in mild agitation, she pouted at Nix. Nix obviously didn't want to talk to her about the Shade, but Chase had no clue what the Shade was or were. Continuing, Nix shot her a glance that said she was watching Chase more closely from now on. Chase wondered what she had done. "The Mournful are what becomes of a Seraphim who has her gauntlet removed, inside or outside of battle, by another. The gem on the gauntlet, once equipped, roots itself in the soul of the girl wielding it. This allows for the use of fantastical magics not otherwise plausible. Unfortunately, having the gem taken off in a manner outside of the wielder's own touch causes something in the gauntlet to pull back; like a sweater thread caught on a door. Only, the thing catching is the soul of the wielder." Chase was grim. This was the one part of her game that she had found really sad, but at the same time had enjoyed writing. No game was a game without a conflict. "This means the Mournful are Seraphim who have had their souls ripped out. The magic stays, however, but becomes somewhat corrupted. This is why the Mournful are a threat. Losing their souls doesn't make them vegetables. It makes them arcane beasts." Her cheerful demeanor seemed to evaporate. "My friend..." She shook her head. "Let's go. Maybe they won't sense you at all." Remaining serious, she changed the subject. "But...you should prepare to be attacked by what....looks like other girls. They're drawn to the untapped potential of Seraphim who have not entered the battlefield yet."  
Chase felt a twinge of guilt. The event that had caused Nix to transform for the first time was witnessing the death of one of her friends; or rather her transition into a Mournful. Her friend was also her first kill as a Seraphim. She just nodded that she was ready to go. She would follow Nix carefully, do as she was told, even if it was just a dream. Although, Chase was beginning to seriously doubt that. She hardly ever experienced dreams so long and so full. They were usually just fragments of nonsensical movies to her; viewed pieces at a time and all out of order. She should be feeling panicked, she supposed at this then. At least feel that this was a horrible delusion. But what Chase really felt was that this was the simple truth of her reality now, and what was crazy was that she didn't feel frightened at all. This was just ok with her.  
Nix took Chase by the hand and led her out of the cottage, which she had apparentally rented for the night and down the road. It was paved cobblestone which gave out a whimsical feel, but Chase knew that within the other homes, there existed technology. It wasn't a medieval game by any means; despite the presence of elves and castles. Trees grew over the path, weaving together to create an effective shield from the sun. Chase had to admit an odd sort of pride regarding how gorgeous everything turned out. If only she could market the game like this; through first-hand experiences. Almost as quickly as she had the thought, she waved it away. This was special; intimate for her.Turning her thoughts to the road ahead, Chase reasoned that if they kept up this brisk walking pace, they should reach the Academy before nightfall, if not directly as the sun set. Unless...the terrain had changed from what she had made it as well.   
Nix remained silent, her grip on Chase's hand gentle; allowing for her to get out of it if she so wished. Nix was the same; just what Chase had pictured her to be. A beacon of love and compassion; caring for all. Nix stopped, jolting Chase out of her thoughts. She was staring ahead down the road, not moving or speaking, but her eyes flicked as if following movement anyway. "Chase...When I say, I'm going to shove you ahead of me. Run down the road to the Academy. You just have to take the first right and then the second left from there."  
Chase frowned and shook her head. While it was fascinating to see the characters outside of situations she had coded them to be in, she didn't want any harm to befall Nix because in her opinion, the little ninja least deserved it. "Chase, they're not after you. You can make it, and you actually really need to. I'm a senior Seraphim. I've got this." Except she didn't. Chase knew that Nix had a tendency to self-sacrifice like this, and that while she was very strong, it didn't always end well. For example, her magic was fire based and in their current location, all her thrashing would do would be to start a fire that surely engulfed the entire forest that came before the Academy. It wasn't like Chase could point this out. She wasn't supposed to know any of these things about Nix, and well, the ninja was kind of right. But if she's telling me to run...that they aren't after me...It has to be the Shade...What doesn't she want me to see?  
"Too late." Nix tensed her grip on Chase's hand before letting go, springing forth in a flash of red light and dropping down from the bubble transformed. "Stay behind me." When it emerged from the edge of Chase's view down the road, she couldn't help but be confused. It looked like a regular girl, albeit somewhat dirty and droopy looking. Raising her head, the girl pierced Chase with sad, cerulean eyes.  
"Mercer..." She whimpered, grasping at her chest, causing Chase to notice for the first time she had a gauntlet, but did not seem to be using it. This also drew Chase's attention the light under the skin on her chest where her heart should beat below. Tilting her head back so that her long, brown locks almost brushed the forest floor, she let out an undulating wail that caused Chase's ears to ring so fiercely that the new Seraphim hit the ground in silent pain. To her dismay, she could see other shapes emerging from the undergrowth, all with the similar glow where their hearts should be; of varying colors. They all sobbed and called for some man or the other. Quite a few spoke Mercer's name, but almost as many cried out for someone they called Valkaerys. Looking closer from her agonizing spot in the dirt, Chase was able to discern that when they wailed, they flickered in transparency, but their heart would remain floating in those brief moments; still clearly visible. Nix stepped out in between them.  
"Try not to watch this, Chase. It's...it's almost too much for me to handle, doing something as terrible as this." Nix looked like she might cry. Chase was going to as well. There were at least seven other Shade.   
Chase opened her mouth, tried to speak. Tried to do anything. A mere squeak of air came out and then she really did cry. Nix was probably going to die and it would be all Chase's fault becuase they couldn't portal out of the situation. Placing one hand over her ruby, Nix spoke. "I am Seraphim Nix and I refuse to let you stand in the way of what is right!" It was a chant of sorts, because in the next moment, a glowing, slender form emerged from the ruby before getting longer and more solid. When the light faded away, Chase was able to see that Nix had split it into two spears, one for each hand. She waited for one to scream before darting in, taking that moment to strike at their exposed heart. She whispered something to the dying creature as it slid off her weapon, something Chase didn't catch. It was pretty hard to miss the burst of white flame that engulfed the body immediately after that, however.   
Chase wobbled to her feet, only to be knocked down by another screech that tore past her eardrums and rummaged around in her brain. It was a terrible, prickly pain like something barbed had wormed its way into her mind and now roamed free. She didn't understand how Nix could stand directly in the path of such a screech and just take it; so that she would be able to strike at the hearts. A trickle of blood bubbled from one of Nix's ears, showing that while she may be withstanding the awful attacks, it wasn't without loss. All the same, the Shade were quickly adapting. Even down by two, there were still five of them, surrounding her. They were all going to let loose at the same time and Nix seemed to know this. Chase wanted to yell at her, scream at her to jump. She knew that a Seraphim could easily escape a blast like that by going upward. But Nix stood her ground. "Please." She begged one of the closer creatures. "Makaerna, don't do this. We fought together last week on the banks of the Blue. I don't want to hurt you. Please....please, oh please..." Nix was losing it. She couldn't do it anymore, Chase could see. This was what she meant by it being too terrible.   
"M-Mercer." The creature murmured, before throwing her head forward and unleashing another shriek of unending pain. The others coordinated with her effort and Nix dropped to the dirt as if gravity had increased a hundredfold. Pressed so hard to the ground, she was ripped right out of her transformation and lay there unconcious in her street clothes while the creatures began to move in. Chase was reminded of lions tearing apart a gazelle and shook, frightened and disgusted and upset. She looked at her own gauntlet, willing it to do something, but the glittering amethyst remained tauntingly dormant. She stood once more on wobbling legs and waved her arms, threw a rock she found, anything to get the attention of the Shade.  
"You're being stupid." A voice from ahead came; located in the general direction the Shade had come from. Chase looked up, locking eyes with Mercer and...there was another man behind him who kind of reminded her of Morgan, but a bit more otherwordly in his terms of ethereal beauty. His hair was ash-blonde where Morgan had been golden, and instead of being cat green, his eyes were a pale, misty shade of sea green. "Shade don't stop feeding for a Seraphim who has yet to fly. You're not even a food item to them." Mercer's cold eyes bore into her own. "You should've run when your escort told you to. We were close enough that we were able to help...this time." Something in his voice made all the pain leave Chase's body and she felt herself smile at him, but sluggishly. He looked back...clearly not pleased and moved too quickly for Chase to follow, leaving the circle of Shade dead. He had stopped moving before their bodies even hit the ground. "Try to keep up." Why does he hate me so much? Chase wondered. What did I- The drowsiness rose to an unbearable point and she lurched sideways, head already lolling. "Son of a fuck-" She heard Mercer swearing before it was all lost to her once more.  
x  
Mrs. Valentine was a very stressed woman. Her daughter had been missing for two days now and the local police had finally taken it seriously; filing papers and putting together a small search team. She had heard of Eveline's act at school, almost literally beating the answers out of another student and it had sickened her. Who would want to hurt someone who couldn't even speak so bad she ran away? As it always did when she thought of Chase's muteness, her heart twinged in grief and anger that her child would have such a fate; to be so easily picked on. She was brave, Mrs. Valentine knew that, but sometimes she really wished she could talk directly to her daughter. Tell her everything would be ok, that she was loved and would always be so.   
Rolling over to look at the portrait next to her digital clock, Mrs. Valentine grabbed it and held it close to her heart. Chase had gotten dressed up nice and gone to the junior prom as friends with Eveline, bless that girl for being such a steadfast friend. It was almost ten at night, so her body insisted that it was time to go to work, even though she knew she had the next week off. Instead of doing nothing, she threw back her covers and wandered down the hallway to Chase's room, looking in at the two forms; one sleeping on the floor and the other on the bed. Morgan and Eveline were currently out of school for fighting, and she had offered to watch them, comfort them. Morgan's mother couldn't have cared less what happened to her son, but Eveline's parents were extremely grateful convinced their daughter was in over her head in emotional pains. They had both spent their day today searching Chase's room for clues; for anything at all. While it had been a fruitless effort, they all felt a little better to be doing something about it. Chase had been the glue; bringing together two children and a mother who might never have interacted on their own. She was good at things like that, Mrs. Valentine mused as she continued down the stairs to the kitchen, opening the cupboards and pulling out the ingredients she needed.   
Eveline liked cupcakes, and for Morgan she was making a creamy, chicken-based rice dish. It was his favorite food, rice. It helped her feel less like she had to actively try not to cry like a madwoman, and that was worth something. She felt in her heart that her daughter was alive and as long as she had the hope, there was no way in hell she was going to stop looking or even ease up a little. No matter what the police told her, she was going to keep looking on her own time and nothing on Earth would ever be able to stop her. "Hello, Sherry." She stiffened, whirling with the butcher's knife she held in her hands to face the voice, even knowing what she would find.   
Teeth grit, she spoke quietly but no less angrily to the man she had left behind with Chase's hearing. "You better leave my house right now, Ivan. I rescind my invitat-"  
Chuckling, the man who had fathered Chase stepped closer. "Sweetheart...." He lifted a strand of her hair and made a big deal of bringing it to his nose; breathing deeply. "You and I both know that shtick doesn't work on me." He pinned her with his strange, yellowish eyes that had reminded her of a hawk during the early stages of their courtship. She shivered, unable to move. "But by all means, keep trying. You know I like it when you fight. It's adorable, really."   
With her chin propped up by two of his fingers, she could feel the amount of strength in his hand. There was no point fighting him. If she called attention to the children, yelled for help, anything, whoever came to investigate would end up dead; without a question. So, she met his eyes unwaveringly, willing all the hate in her body into that gaze. "You left us." She spat, watching it hit his cheek and begin to drip off his face. Ivan didn't even flinch.   
"I'm a faery, Sherry." He winked at her. "You can't seriously expect I'd want something to do with a family life. I just really liked you. You should've let me make you part of the Eternal Court." His lips grazed her cheek and she had to fight against the fire that rose in her belly. While she had long since moved on from him romantically, there was no denying the fact the things that had attracted her physically in the first place were still there.  
"Chase...wouldn't have lived. You told me that."   
"That's right." The lips worked their way up her neck. "But I didn't ask for her. Just for you." Shaking free the euphoria that his voice caused her human mind, Sherry found that she was very angry.   
"Fuck you, Ivan." He chuckled, sending vibrations through the hollow of her throat from where he had his lips planted.  
"Maybe later, Sherry dear. For now...why don't you reconsider my offer? Come on...you're a mortal. Eternal life should be a no-brainer." A single tear welled up and dripped from her chin.   
"No, Ivan." He was tearing her heart out. She had loved him; still did in the very back of her heart because it wasn't something she did lightly. It hurt so much to see him as he was, in his true colors.   
"I'll be back..." When his overwhelmingly immense presence waned, she let herself fall to her knees and clutched her face in her hands, sobbing wildly.   
"Oh Chase...What did he do to you?"  
x  
When Chase opened her eyes, a lilting tune reached her ears. It had been playing in the background of her brief, feverish dream. Looking down, she saw the soft, feminine curves that made up Nix's backside and looked away. She was being carried on her shoulders. Behind them, trailed the two men who had rescued them from the Shade. Or rather, Mercer and his silent companion. Having yet to realize she was awake, they were talking about something. Chase listened. "You can't keep her hidden from it forever. She'll be paired with a Slayer, like you and I."  
"Valkaerys...I'm worried about her. You can't blame me. Not all of us who are worthy to wield the gauntlets of magic can...handle the pairing. She doesn't need to be afraid...I don't want that for her. Not for any more of us Seraphim." Nix was quiet. "We already have to fight to the end. She shouldn't have to be worried about her partner as well."  
Mercer's voice answered, cold and sure. "It's something all of you face and all of you are told of the possible happenings. If you don't tell her about the relationship between Slayers and Seraphim, when she gets her own, it'll be hopeless. She'll go Shade in no time." He stopped a moment. "Besides of which, she's awake already. She heard it." Caught, Chase let herself be put down so that she was now facing them.  
"Valkaerys...will you do the watch?" Nix gestured for Chase to follow her over to a log and sat down. Taking her seat, Chase felt a strange sense of building intensity. Valkaerys took off into the bushes to avoid anymore surprise attacks and Mercer stayed, propped against a tree, arms folded. He looked displeased as he had on both of the other occasions in which Chase observed him. "Chase, the Mournful are actually our secondary purpose." Chase was surprised. This was news to her. "The primary objective of a Seraphim is to..." She seemed to be having some difficulties. "We fight every battle." She tried, unsuccesfully to start from another angle.   
"A Seraphim is expected to leave another Seraphim when she dies. So that there are always more girls left to fight. Or another Slayer, should she have a boy." Mercer was blunt. "And that's not all. She also fights the majority of the battles, including wars, minor skirmishes and helps with disagreements. She is the ultimate peace keeper."  
Chase shrugged, as if to say, "So what?"   
"So...that's a problem, considering the fact that most Seraphim end up with Slayers, especially when you think of what a Slayer is." Chase gestured for her to go on.   
"Some like Mercer, were just born with the genes of a Slayer. Others have to undergo genetic alteration to literally change who and what they are." Nix made careful eye contact. "A Slayer is the companion to a Seraphim. His job is to keep her alive as long as possible, so that she may serve for as many centuries as she can. Unfortunately, one of the genetic sequences making up a Slayer is borrowed from dark fae. It makes them irresisitable in every way to those of mortal lives and hearts. They get too...addicted to their Slayer's presence and become the Shade when he is gone for too long. As a Shade, you can no longer use the magic of the gauntlet, but you are formidable nonetheless, forever searching for your Slayer. Craving his touch. You become a shell, a broken soul doomed to wander. Most Seraphim do not last long enough to leave another Seraphim behind, so we are always too few in number to truly keep the peace." Done with her spiel, she pulled Chase up, gave her a reassuring pat and whispered to her that she would do her best to keep her safe. When Valkaerys rejoined them, they once again started for the Academy, but Chase's mind spun too fiercely to appreciate the journey any more. She was far too preoccupied. At least...I know why Mercer is so...effective on me.


End file.
